On a Sunday afternoon...

Right before Rebekah's vacation with us was over, we decided on the spur of the moment to take a few family pictures. The kids, who are always very accepting of this irritating picture-taking habit of mine, were kind of tired and hungry. We had just returned from church and the only thing on their mind was food. Nevertheless, they were good sports and did what they know best when it comes to pleasing their mom, and posed. Elijah was kind enough to let his hunger linger for a few more minutes as well. Of course, the whole thing didn't take more than 20 minutes, but I was still glad that my family lent me their time for some photographic fun.

My children's favorite things with aunt Rebekah (August 13 - 18)

We started our "Rebekah week" by going to the water lagoon. It was one of the hottest days of the year, so this was the best destination to frequent. The children loved splashing in the water, Rebekah enjoyed getting tanned, and I relaxed reading my book. Charlton has finally overcome his fear of the water, and played the whole time alongside his siblings. What joy!


Early Tuesday morning found us taking the boys to a baseball class taught by one of the young men in our ward. My boys loved it that they were actually playing on a real baseball field and took the practice very seriously. Of course, after they had played for almost two hours, my boys announced that they both wanted to enroll in little league baseball. We'll have to wait till the season starts.


For dinner, we took Rebekah to dine out. We had had a busy day going from choir rehearsal to piano lesson, from cleaning to shopping, from baseball to library, so we opted out for eating out at a nearby restaurant. The kids had fun talking and making jokes, and I felt stress free from not having to think what to cook for dinner.


On Wednesday, we went to the Jelly Belly Factory. We took the tour, bought some delicious candy, and then tried to find Chick-fil-A, a favorite fast food restaurant for the Garmon clan (my children included), located nearby.
When we got back, Gillian and I got ready for her Carmina Burana rehearsal taking place in San Francisco. Her choir had been invited to sing with the San Francisco Choral and San Francisco symphony in the Davies Hall. This was a great opportunity for the choir, especially Gillian's level, to sing in front of a big audience in one of the most revered symphonic stages in the country.

When we got there we were a few minutes early, so I took Gillian to a trendy, little coffee shop located next to the opera house. Gillian thought this was the best part of her rehearsal, sitting with mom in a coffee shop eating and reading. She loved it, and I was happy that she had some European blood in her after all.
On Thursday and Friday I got to attend the best activity for me ever: filling my house with books. Once a year, several library branches go through their books and give away those that have been withdrawn for various reasons. So on Thursday morning I took the kids with me and let them choose their own books while I joyfully skipped from one box to another. While we were all hunting for our own books, Jefferson surprised me with an amazingly thoughtful act of kindness. After looking for about 30 minutes and having filled his two boxes with books of various interests, he came upon me and presented me with a pocket size book of English poetry. He said that when he saw it he thought that I would like to have it. I was utterly touched to the core. My 8 year old knew of my interest and thought of me. What a special gift!

On Friday, I went on my own to the field of dreams, and filled a few other boxes with books. I found several books for me, for my friends, for my children, and of course for my father-in-law who reads them as fast as myself. I think they are the best gifts. It is only fitting for me to quote a verse from a favorite American poet of mine:

The love of learning, the sequestered nooks,
And all the sweet serenity of books.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow~

So you can imagine my surprise and joy when later that day my husband presented me with an anniversary gift, a Kindle. I sure scored this year. Thirteen years of sweet Elijah companionship, four adoring children, and a house full of books! What more can a girl want.

While I was getting my book fix that Friday morning, Rebekah took care of my children feeding, playing and reading to them. It sure felt good to have her help. For a mother of four to be away for a few hours on her own was by all means a very appreciated gift. Thank you, Rebekah.

On Saturday morning, Rebekah and I took the kids for a back-to-school shopping. While Gillian and I were looking for clothes for her, and Rebekah went checking out the grown-up section, my boys didn't lose any time, but went straight at the boys area and selected their own clothing. When I turned my attention to my boys, I found them pretending to be models on the display area. I couldn't stop laughing, especially when Jefferson was directing Charlton to sit by the dog display and pretend to pet it. Maybe I should have these boys model, so they can pay for their own wardrobe! I was there for Gillian, but it was the boys who had several items in their hands, already set to go. They had even found something for Charlton. (Don't you love Charlton's gun in his hand? I love it that my boys are both fashionable and tough.)


We ended our week by attending Gillian's Carmina Burana performance. Elijah and I had attended the night before, and on Saturday night I accompanied Rebekah. Both evenings were filled with melodious peace and great satisfaction. I read somewhere that music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. Music has that effect on me. I love music of various genres. I find enjoyment in classical as much as in blue grass. I listen to R&B and Pop with the same indulgence. Jazz and Band music move me tremendously. And at this moment I'm really finding a serene happiness listening to Elijah's collection of Doo-wop music. But this Saturday night, the music of Carmina Burana touched me in a special way. Knowing that my own daughter was singing up on the stage with her choir made me want to relish every moment of it. I was so proud of her. Seeing Gillian afterwards so happy and so proud of her performance touched me even more. My girl is growing up! What a blessing to be her mother.

Birthdays, our sweet Bekah, and much more of such fun celebrations (August 6 - 12)

On Monday, August 6th, we celebrated Elijah's 35th birthday. If we had been in Albania, he would have had a wedding-scale celebration, whether he wanted one or not. Since we weren't in Albania, I tried to be considerate of his desires and had a small birthday party with just our family. We made his favorite diner, we loved eating his favorite cake, and presented him with our gifts, his favorite being a very nice baseball glove with which he could play baseball better with his children. He even got me out to play catch with him. The favorite part of his birthday, however, was snuggling with his family. And that's exactly what he wanted for his birthday.


On Tuesday, August 7th, my friends and I took our kids to a nearby regional airport for a tour of their rescue vehicles, as well as to check out the inside of a helicopter and single engine planes. This was heaven for my boys, especially Jefferson who dreams of becoming a pilot. He was the first to enter the airplane and pretended to be flying it. Gillian loved seeing the helicopter better because it reminded her of the helicopter they use in the T.V show MASH, which she told me she watched last year with her grandfather. She said she loved it. Funny thing is I watched MASH for the first time while I was pregnant with her, and I loved it too.
Charlton also liked the helicopter the best, especially climbing inside. Since visiting the aircraft carrier the previous week, he has been obsessed with airplanes and helicopters. He has been playing with his toy airplanes taking them to bed with him as well. I told Elijah that it's already too late for Charlton to change his mind about his future career; I've already decided he is going to be a dentist. Too many teeth to fix in our family! I was comforted by the idea that came to my mind that children change their interests every week. I'll keep telling Charlton what a great dentist he will be. As for our fun tour at the Buchanan Field Airport, I really enjoyed it. It was short, it was close by, it was educational. We got back just in time for lunch.

On Wednesday, Elijah decided it was time for us to taste some of our own corn. We have been harvesting our own tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and green beans for weeks now, but we hadn't tried our corn yet. We shared some with our neighbors and friends, and boiled the rest for ourselves. And that corn was delicious! Fresh and juicy, it made for a great snack and side dish. And more importantly, it increased a desire in our kids to rely on our own garden continuously. Next year we plan to plant even more vegetables and fruits.


On Thursday, I took the kids swimming, and while they played and swam, my friend and I conversed about everything under the sun. It's really helpful to find friends you like whose kids get along perfectly with your kids. And what's even better is having a daughter who doesn't mind that most of my friends' children are boys. I guess to her it feels like an extension of the games she plays at home with her brothers. I love it that she is so easy going, although I know she misses having her best friend Mary around. Those two girls were so well-matched. Just the other day they were talking on the phone to each other as if they were teenage girls, which was very fun to witness. I hope Gillian finds a friend like that nearby. I think we can all honestly say that having a bosom friend during this age is very important; I still find myself reminiscing about my childhood and friends of that period.

Friday morning was spent cleaning and getting the house in order for our guest, Elijah's sister, Rebekah. My kids love her, but Gillian was most excited. They get along very well with each other as if they were sisters. They even look alike, and sometimes I find Gillian use facial expressions that I've seen on Rebekah. Needless to say, Gillian was really looking forward to being with Rebekah.


When we got home from the airport, Rebekah gave my older kids a little gift and was going to give Charlton his on his birthday. Charlton, who is very sensitive, came running to me whispering that Rebekah didn't have anything for him. And then he started crying, which of course melted our hearts at once. When Rebekah gave him his gift - a superhero mask and cape - he couldn't have been happier. He had just changed his clothes and was still in underwear when we put the costume on him. He looked so funny that I couldn't help it but take a few pictures of my sweet, sweet superhero flying to the rescue.


On Saturday, Elijah and I went to the bishop's storehouse, our church's food resource center, to work on our 1 year supply of food. Although we do have a couple of months food storage, Elijah feels strongly that we need to work on having in store 1 year supply of food for our family. Do you know how much space we need to store all that food for six people? We have just started with this project, after having finished with our 72 hour kits and three months rotating food supply. Getting all that wheat, which is good to have since it can store for more than 10 years, made me realize how unprepared I am when it comes to preparing meals from the food storage. I don't even have a grinder!!! But I'm not put down. As long as we start somewhere and work a day at a time in following our Lord's admonishment in being prepared in all things, we'll be blessed. I hope our guests don't mind sleeping surrounded by food cans and cereal boxes.

On Saturday afternoon, we took our kids to a friend's birthday party, where they were introduced to laser guns. Now even my youngest child wants a laser gun for Christmas. I'm sure next year he will ask for his own iPad. Continuously I'm reminded how hard it is to try to provide my kids with a childhood similar to mine, where books and friends played the most important part. This summer has been somewhat a similar experience for them - just an old fashioned childhood filled with magic tree house games, swimming with friends, and reading lazily in the hammock. They watched a movie now and then, used the computer when they would remember once a month or so, and learned how to cook. They rarely felt a need for other things except each other. I will keep those laser tag guns and Wii games out of my house as long as I can, which from the look of it, it isn't that long.


Early Sunday morning I took Gillian to sing with her choir. They were performing the national anthem at a regional swimming championship.
I was a bit skeptical about doing this on the Sabbath. Till now keeping our Sabbath day holy has been relatively easy since our kids were young and they didn't have many activities that they needed to participate on Sunday. Each family has their own set of rules of what constitutes relevant activities for the Sabbath. Elijah and I have always maintained that sports isn't one of them. Good music on the other hand offers peace and inspires. Listening to that choir sing the national anthem I had no doubt that this was an edifying activity. But it was still a hard decision to make. And I thought taking care of babies was hard; being a parent to growing children with their individual issues is proving already challenging. I can't wait till they become teenagers! I hope by then I would become a bit more wiser. I'm also truly grateful to have a husband who is a strong leader for our family and always on my side. It helps to know that you are not alone in this journey we call life.